ROSE: Pretty much everyone agrees that fewer immigrants entered the U.S. labor force last year, but not everyone thinks it's a problem.

ROY BECK: My point is, that's good. Labor tightness is good.

ROSE: Roy Beck is the head of NumbersUSA, a nonprofit in Washington that pushes for lower levels of immigration. And he's the author of a new book called “Back Of The Hiring Line."

BECK: It is proven that you tighten the labor market and wages go up. It always happens. The fact that we had one year of less immigration contributed to that, and that's good. It's one of the most positive things that could happen for tackling the economic inequality.